Train Simulator 2014 so unstable now!

[K2rover]

Hi all,

My Train Simulator installation has suddenly become so unstable in the last few weeks. Just getting worse and worse and I'm just getting SBHH's the whole time now! For instance, I can't get past Stratford on GEML without a crash! The lovely Crouch Valley 3 line has also become really unstable with SBHH's. I then got an SBHH on London - Faversham for the first time ever just now.....the frustration and fear that many hundreds of pounds have been wasted on this game has pushed me to ask on here why this might be happening?

My system specs are Processor: Intel(R) Core (TM) i5 CPU 750@2.67GHz
Memory: 4.00GB
System Type: 64 bit operating system

Factory Image (:D) 2.43 GB free of 13.8 GB
HP (:C) 181 GB free of 582 GB


I was also having problems with the textures not loading up on the recently purchased AP Class 321 and a number of people mentioned a lack of memory. Strangely, the textures are always loading okay now, but I'm just getting loads of crashes in game. I don't know whether the recent updates to the game have made my installation more unstable. I know that perhaps I'm lacking RAM on my computer, but I've never had this amount of problems before. RAM doesn't degenerate over time surely?

I don't seem to be able to run a scenario on many routes the whole length without a crash. Also I've noticed I can't finish one scenario and then play another scenario without coming out of simulator and restarting it each time.

Is there anything I can do? I just don't understand how this game can be so unstable. I've never had any problems with playing games on my computer so don't understand really what's going on. Any help or advice would be much appreciated.

[yerkes]

The first thing I'd be inclined to check is your RAM - perhaps a faulty module. The randomness of the problems may point in that direction (at least it sounds similar to what I experienced a year or so ago). If you're on Win7 you can use these instructions: http://windows.microsoft.com/en-gb/wind ... r-computer

[K2rover]

Thank you very much for your reply. Have just run a memory diagnostics test as suggested and it didn't highlight anything (unfortunately or fortunately...not sure which?!? )

[gptech]

HP machine?
What are the full specs?, PSU and GPU in particular.

[K2rover]

Thank you gptech, how do you check for those on the computer system?

[K2rover]

I've also measured my SteamApps folder, which I assume contains everything to do with Train Simulator, to be 130GB if that means anything. Can't find what makes up the other 263GBs on the C: Drive which is strange.

[rcetank]

[quote="K2rover"]Hi all,


I was also having problems with the textures not loading up on the recently purchased AP Class 321 and a number of people mentioned a lack of memory. Strangely, the textures are always loading okay now,


Check to see if your settings have gone up. As you can see textures you could not see before. If your settings are to high for your system this will make the game unstable.

[Trev123]

Thank you gptech, how do you check for those on the computer system?

Click on the Start button, lower left hand corner, select all programs, click on the accessories folder, then the system tools folder, then system information, you can select different things to view from the left hand side. As for your power supply you would have to most likely take the side off of your computer to determine what wattage it is.

[K2rover]

Thanks! Here is my full system information

OS Name Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium
Version 6.1.7601 Service Pack 1 Build 7601
Other OS Description Not Available
OS Manufacturer Microsoft Corporation
System Manufacturer HP-Pavilion
System Model VG244AA-ABU p6235uk
System Type x64-based PC
Processor Intel(R) Core(TM) i5 CPU 750 @ 2.67GHz, 2668 Mhz, 4 Core(s), 4 Logical Processor(s)
BIOS Version/Date American Megatrends Inc. 5.06, 17/09/2009
SMBIOS Version 2.6
Windows Directory C:\Windows
System Directory C:\Windows\system32
Boot Device \Device\HarddiskVolume1
Locale United Kingdom
Hardware Abstraction Layer Version = "6.1.7601.17514"
Time Zone GMT Daylight Time
Installed Physical Memory (RAM) 4.00 GB
Total Physical Memory 3.99 GB
Available Physical Memory 2.47 GB
Total Virtual Memory 7.98 GB
Available Virtual Memory 5.52 GB
Page File Space 3.99 GB
Page File C:\pagefile.sys

[Trev123]

If you click on components on the left and click on display it will give you information on what type of graphics card you have.
Just searched on the internet and it looks as if it has an Nvidia Geforce GT220 1gb card and a 300watt PSU.

[gptech]

it looks as if it has an Nvidia Geforce GT220 1gb card and a 300watt PSU.

Thanks Trev,
Both of those are a little on the light side for gaming, but it's not as bad as it could be!

K2, has the problem steadily become worse as you've added more and more 'goodies'? and are any other programs or games also showing a degradation in reliability?

I've also measured my SteamApps folder, which I assume contains everything to do with Train Simulator, to be 130GB if that means anything

Yes, the SteamApps folder contains all your Steam games so unless you have other Steam games you've added about 120GB of extras, or at least have 120GB of extra files but not all may be needed. It's unlikely you'll have a huge amount of spurious files though, certainly shouldn't have enough to make a huge difference but it's worth bearing in mind just in case we have to look really closely.
What the rest of the data on the drive is shouldn't really matter, you have enough free space to allow Windows to manage the temporary files and the HDD part of Virtual Address Space properly.

You're a touch weak on the RAM side, it's possible that both your graphics and PSU are also weak and there's still a chance that one of your hardware components is starting to fail so they'd be the most likely causes of the problem rather than the game itself, with maybe the systems configuration playing a part.
Do you have Steam installed in the default location?
Do you run as Administrator on a day to day basis?
How do you handle security?---firewall, anti-virus sort of stuff--and is UAC turned off?

[K2rover]

Thank you for your responses. Here are my Graphics Card details.

Name NVIDIA GeForce GT 220
PNP Device ID PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_0A20&SUBSYS_19101462&REV_A2\4&33C0B30A&0&0018
Adapter Type GeForce GT 220, NVIDIA compatible
Adapter Description NVIDIA GeForce GT 220
Adapter RAM 1.00 GB (1,073,741,824 bytes)
Installed Drivers nvd3dumx.dll,nvwgf2umx.dll,nvwgf2umx.dll,nvd3dum,nvwgf2um,nvwgf2um
Driver Version 9.18.13.1106
INF File oem41.inf (Section002 section)
Color Planes Not Available
Color Table Entries 4294967296
Resolution 1600 x 900 x 60 hertz
Bits/Pixel 32
Memory Address 0xFA000000-0xFBDFFFFF
Memory Address 0xD0000000-0xDFFFFFFF
Memory Address 0xCE000000-0xDFFFFFFF
I/O Port 0x0000CC00-0x0000CC7F
IRQ Channel IRQ 16
I/O Port 0x000003B0-0x000003BB
I/O Port 0x000003C0-0x000003DF
Memory Address 0xA0000-0xBFFFF
Driver c:\windows\system32\drivers\nvlddmkm.sys (9.18.13.1106, 10.53 MB (11,036,448 bytes), 25/02/2013 23:32)

[K2rover]

it looks as if it has an Nvidia Geforce GT220 1gb card and a 300watt PSU.

Thanks Trev,
Both of those are a little on the light side for gaming, but it's not as bad as it could be!

K2, has the problem steadily become worse as you've added more and more 'goodies'? and are any other programs or games also showing a degradation in reliability?

I've also measured my SteamApps folder, which I assume contains everything to do with Train Simulator, to be 130GB if that means anything

Yes, the SteamApps folder contains all your Steam games so unless you have other Steam games you've added about 120GB of extras, or at least have 120GB of extra files but not all may be needed. It's unlikely you'll have a huge amount of spurious files though, certainly shouldn't have enough to make a huge difference but it's worth bearing in mind just in case we have to look really closely.
What the rest of the data on the drive is shouldn't really matter, you have enough free space to allow Windows to manage the temporary files and the HDD part of Virtual Address Space properly.

You're a touch weak on the RAM side, it's possible that both your graphics and PSU are also weak and there's still a chance that one of your hardware components is starting to fail so they'd be the most likely causes of the problem rather than the game itself, with maybe the systems configuration playing a part.
Do you have Steam installed in the default location?
Do you run as Administrator on a day to day basis?
How do you handle security?---firewall, anti-virus sort of stuff--and is UAC turned off?

I would say that the problems have got worse over maybe the last month or so. Most other games run fine on my PC. Since I installed the AP321 I have noticed that things have got considerably worse, but I'm not sure if this is just a nasty coincidence. I'm a bit worried about buying any more add-ons for train simulator although there are quite a few things I'd like to add to the collection.

I have Steam installed in the default location I think in the Programme Files (x86) on the C Drive. I also assume I run as administrator each time I use the computer and have both firewall and anti-virus software installed. I think UAC is switched on as whenever say I download and install an AP pack, I get a pop-up box asking whether I should trust the programme etc.

[firetrap1]

Best course of action will be to first add some more RAM to your machine. If your windows platform is a 64 bit version then this will give ts2014 more breathing space for textures, as currently TS will probably be sharing all 4 Gb with all your other windows based programs. This will help with textures not loading and random crashes.

If you can afford it, then I would also think about a new graphics card and power supply unit. Most new graphics cards need in the range of 550watts and upwards to even boot up correctly. Check the graphics card specifications before you buy a new PSU first. Also try to get a named brand from a reputable seller.

Chris

[trainsmit]

Clean systems run better. So regular cleaning of cooling fins and fans may prolong usability.

Assuming GPU temp is OK, and clearing blueprint cache or verifying game file cache on Steam did NOT solve the problem, you may consider:

Size of main memory (RAM) makes a difference - especially - on 64-bit platforms. Upgrade to at least 8 GB, if possible 16.

Get a better Graphics card or lower settings. Say from 10 to 6 and see how it goes. Set the game option: -FPSlimit=25

It is my impression that DLCs are growing in size, both in texture resolution and number of luascripts running. This is good looking and has nice features, but is is possible to write very inefficient script-programs.

It may also well be possible to create scenarios on some computer, that it will not be possible to run on any computer. Look at memory usage when the game is running!